This invention relates to label dispensers for applying labels to containers and other packages and, more particularly, to a dispenser having an elongated guide assembly for separating a label supply station from a dispenser head to reduce space requirements alongside of a conveyer of the containers.
In the packaging industry, containers such as bottles, cartons, and other packages are transported along a conveyer past a number of stations, each of which includes equipment for performance of a packaging task. For example, these stations may provide the tasks of filling a bottle with a powdery or liquid substance, closing the bottle with a cap or other closure device, applying a label to the bottle, applying a seal to the bottle, and, possibly, stamping the bottle with some form of legend or art work. In the event that the bottle is provided with a specific shape, such as a rectangular cross-sectional shape, the conveyor line may also include equipment for reorienting the bottle for receiving a specific label, seal, or printing.
A problem arises in that the equipment disposed at the various stations for accomplishing the foregoing packaging steps may occupy an excessive amount of space within the packaging plant. It is readily appreciated that the arrangement of equipment to accommodate personnel and other considerations in the layout of a packaging plant can best be accomplished by minimizing the space required for the various packaging operations. In particular, there are situations wherein an additional labeling machine is to be inserted in the packaging line and, accordingly, space must be provided for such additional labeling machine. Unfortunately, existing dispensers and applicators of labels have a physical size which militates against insertion within an existing packaging line without substantial modification of the line, including the necessity for extending the conveyor and the repositioning of existing packaging equipment alonside the conveyor.